An Unbelievable Adventure
by Story Please
Summary: Harry finds himself waking with a broken heart and a hangover. Apparently he's put an ad in the Quibbler at some point the night before. "Wanted: Diversion. Will do anything for up to a month. Serious inquiries only. Send an owl to the Quibbler Attention: Suitor 435138."


Author's Note: A Luna/Harry story for The-Next-Chinese-Raven. I know it's a bit overdue, but it took me awhile to find inspiration for it. I hope you enjoy it! :)

* * *

 **An Unbelievable Adventure**

"Harry, please. Wake up. I need your help."

Harry's first thought was _Ginny! She's back! It was just a horrible nightmare after all!_

"Come on, Harry," the voice continued, the tone lilting slightly. "I suppose I can't quite blame you. After all, your head is clouded even worse than usual. I had to burn five sage bindings with a twist of lemon to get into your room."

The soft, oddly familiar voice seemed to be coming from above him, and Harry blinked, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. He tried to turn over, convinced he was dreaming, but small, cold hands slid against his shoulders and gently shook him until he moaned with protest and forced himself to grab blindly for his glasses. It had been a rough night for him, and he didn't want to do more thinking than was necessary.

 _After all...Ginny...is…._

"Whaddya w-LUNA!?" Harry froze as he slipped his glasses over his eyes and his vision became clear enough to see that she was straddling him on the bed.

She smiled softly at him and pressed the bridge of his glasses gently to center them on his face a bit better.

"I heard you were looking for a diversion," she said, and it took Harry a full minute to realize that she was holding up a copy of _The Quibbler_ in one hand.

"I...I…huh?" Harry stammered, trying not to think about the fact that she was pressed rather firmly against his pelvis.

Though his head was beginning to pound, he was incredibly glad for all the firewhiskey he'd drunk the night before to dull the painful ache in his chest of knowing that Ginny was moving on without him. It dulled _other_ _things_ , as well, thank Merlin.

"I meant your ad, silly!" Luna said, pointing to a small square in the back.

"Wanted: Diversion. Will do anything for up to a month. Serious inquiries only. Send an owl to the Quibbler Attention: Suitor 435138." Harry read it aloud, his voice slurring slightly, pronouncing "anything" more like "ennithin" and "owl" as more of "ew-l."

"I have a diversion, Harry," Luna said, an enigmatic smile on her face. "I hope you don't mind me coming directly to you since we're friends."

"Yeah." Harry repeated dumbly. "Friends."

"Great!" Luna said, clapping her hands together and making Harry jump. "It's settled, then. I'll wait for you outside while you get dressed and take care of other matters."

Luna leapt off of Harry and landed gracefully on her feet. Truth be told, Harry was rather impressed by her agility. It was then that he realized that she was wearing a pair of long brown cargo pants and a vest covered in multicolored pockets of varying sizes, which, all things considered, was not a completely out of the ordinary outfit when it came to Luna Lovegood.

Harry pulled himself up to a sitting position and stretched, which didn't do much to wake him up, then trudged to the bathroom to make himself at least halfway presentable.

When Harry finally entered the kitchen wearing jeans and a wrinkled t-shirt, he was surprised to find a plate of breakfast waiting for him, especially since he hadn't asked Kreacher to make it.

"Um...are these pancakes…. _blue_?" he asked, sitting down and prodding one of them with a fork.

"The girl meddles!" Kreacher said irritably. "Kreacher tried to stop her, but she says she knows you would like them."

"It's fine, Kreacher," Harry said, turning to find that Luna was sitting across from him with her own plate.

Kreacher grumbled and left.

"I make them with trazzleberries," Luna said dreamily as she placed a bite of pancake in her mouth. "Mmmmm! Perfect!"

"Um...aren't trazzleberries poisonous?" Harry asked, looking at them skeptically.

"Not in January!" Luna replied with a knowing smile. "The Pliffer-footles suck the poison out of the plant for their mating rituals, leaving the berries delicious and un-poisony!"

Harry considered Luna's words and then shrugged. Dying didn't seem so bad anymore, especially not after all that had happened, and besides, if the pancakes were as delicious as Luna said, perhaps they were worth taking the risk.

He took a hesitant bite, his eyes widening as the flavor filled his mouth.

"Oh, _wow_!" he said, his mouth full of pancake. He closed his eyes, savoring the pleasure of the flavor, doing his best not to think of the fact that it might very well be his last meal if Luna was wrong.

"See? I told you!" Luna poured them both some orange juice and they both ate their meals without much in the way of further conversation. After all, there were plenty more pancakes to eat.

"Hmm, I guess I'm not dead," Harry remarked as he lay on the couch in the library after they'd finished eating.

"Of course not, silly!" Luna replied from the couch across from him. "I need you to be decidedly _not_ _dead_ for the trip ahead."

"That's...er...comforting," Harry said, rubbing his eyes and putting his glasses back on. "Can you tell me a bit about where we're going?"

"You did say you were up for _anything_ ," Luna said, smiling. Somehow, though he hadn't heard her move, she was standing over him, looking down with an enigmatic look on her face.

In fact, if Harry didn't know any better, he might think that she was about to bend over and kiss him.

Harry's eyes went wide with panic. "No, wait, Luna, we can't! Ginny...she's your best friend!"

"We shouldn't be gone for longer than a few days, Harry," Luna said in reply, standing up straight, the smile still on her face. "Make sure to wear something with sleeves. I'll be waiting on the front porch for you, unless you'd like me to help you pack."

With that, she stepped back and waited for Harry to get up from where he lay on the couch.

"Um...I'm fine, actually. I'll see you in a few minutes," Harry said awkwardly, stepping back and hurrying up the stairs.

What, exactly, had he just gotten himself into?

* * *

 _The night before…._

Harry slumped over in his seat, his forehead resting on the table in front of him as a small bit of spittle dribbled out of the side of his mouth.

"Oi!"

Harry turned his head and groaned. The noise was horrible. His head pounded with drink- he'd always been a lightweight and tonight was no exception.

"OI! 'ow you doing there, mate?"

Harry made a weak waving gesture with one hand, but when he heard the telltale impact of someone sitting down across from him, he raised his head and blinked to clear the blurry vision before him.

"Saw yer girl leave earlier. Looked like a bad break up if ever I saw one," said a grizzled old man wearing a captain's hat. He held a corn-cob pipe in his teeth and squinted one eye to complete the image, though he was wearing wizarding robes. "Here. Yeh can have this. I find it's good fer a good time when I'm a bit lonely."

Harry barely registered the sound of paper as the man placed something in the table in front of him before the man was gone.

"Hmm," Harry muttered, looking down at the swimming words. "Personal ad, eh? Why not? It's not as though I can fall any further than I have."

He scrawled some words on parchment and folded it up, then stumbled off to find the tavern owl before flooing home. He'd reserved a room in the tavern, but he couldn't bear to spend the night there without... _her…_

Nothing would ever be the same.

* * *

"So how's things in the Auror office?" Luna asked, as Harry closed the door behind him, his rucksack balanced on his back.

He'd not been sure what to bring, so he'd just thrown in a bunch of clothing, a toothbrush and a small bag with an Undetectable Extension Charm on it that was filled with various food items, thanks to Kreacher, who refused to let him leave to "parts unknown" without it.

"Oh, the same as always," Harry replied with a shrug. "They just made me take off a month because I've been working nonstop the past year and a half without taking any time, so I've maxed out my vacation hours. I was going to...well...never mind what I was going to do. I'm here now, and I'm ready for that 'anything.'"

He tried to give Luna a genuine smile, but he could tell by her expression that she wasn't fooled one bit.

"Your mouth says one thing, but your Wrackspurt infestation says another," she replied.

"You know I can't see them, so what does it matter?" Harry replied, growing somewhat annoyed.

"Sometimes you can't see something until you start looking for it." Luna said cooly.

"Well maybe I'm tired of looking for _things_!" Harry snapped. "Maybe I want things to find _me_ for a change!"

"I found you. And your ad." Luna regarded him with her icy blue eyes. "Harry, I know you're hurting, but you still have a choice. If you're still interested in coming, you'll need to touch this," Luna said, holding up an empty bottle of butterbeer. "I want you to really think, though, Harry. Are you really ready?"

"Yes," Harry said, steeling himself and gripping onto the bottle.

"Portus," Luna said softly, and Harry knew only darkness.

* * *

"Where are we?" Harry said, looking around him with his wand at the ready.

It appeared that they were in some sort of tropical jungle, but other than that, he couldn't place it.

"Atlantis," Luna said casually.

"Oh...wait, WHAT?!" Harry looked around wildly, as though expecting a sign to confirm Luna's words. "Isn't it supposed to be underwater?"

"Oh, we are," Luna replied, as though this were completely inconsequential. "Look up."

Harry looked more closely and realized that what he'd initially thought was deep-blue sky featured tiny spots of color darting back and forth in silvery schools. A giant shadow seemed to block out the sun for a moment and Harry gaped as a massive whale floated lazily above them.

"What keeps the water out?" Harry asked, his eyes wide.

"Ancient runic magic, according to Hermione," Luna said. "She was rather interested in helping me to research this place. Not so much in coming along, though."

Harry thought about his best friend, and shook his head. "One impromptu camping trip was probably enough for her entire lifetime," he said with a sad smile, thinking back to their horcrux hunt from hell.

Luna shrugged. "That's why I was glad that I saw your ad in the Quibbler. I manage it now, you know."

Harry shook his head. Though he'd tried to keep track of everyone after graduating from Hogwarts, he was rather terrible at writing letters and between Auror training and Ginny, well, things had been complicated. Actually, once he gave himself the chance to think about it, he'd only seen Ginny once or twice in the past few months. Other than a few hurried floo calls and a series of short notes that dwindled away to nothing, Harry hadn't properly spent time with Ginny for over a year. He began to feel a bit stupid for having thought that a proposal was a good idea. Ginny had been signed onto the Hollyhead Harpies. She wouldn't have time for a wedding, much less the other things that came with it. Harry felt a twinge of guilt for having neglected Ron and Hermione, both of whom had been in a relationship on and off for over a year. As usual, they got along well as long as they weren't having a fight, but their fights were epic and would sometimes last days. Harry wasn't sure if he should consider their relationship to be strong or a completely horrible idea, but it wasn't really his place to judge. After all, he'd thought that he and Ginny were on the same page, but that obviously wasn't the case.

"I don't mean to rush you on your thinking," Luna said, tapping Harry on the shoulder, "but it appears that we have company."

Harry snapped out of his reverie and looked up to see a very large bird that reminded him more of a dinosaur with feathers. Its curved beak ended in a deadly point and its beady eyes were fixed on them both.

"I'm going to take a wild guess and assume that thing isn't tame," Harry said, gripping his wand tightly as the bird let out a throaty cry and stepped menacingly towards them.

"What a lovely specimen of a Graggous!" Luna cried with delight, pulling a camera from her bag, "Look at that stunning plumage! I read that they can eat a fully-grown buck!'

"Luna, I think that it's going to eat us if we don't get out of here!" Harry cried, grabbing Luna by the hand and pulling her out of the way just as the creature charged.

Luna allowed him to pull her along through the undergrowth, turning back every so often to snap a quick picture of the charging creature, which barreled along after them for quite some time, though its larger size made it harder for it to follow them. From the size of the creature's claws, Harry was very glad that it couldn't. Finally, Harry pulled Luna behind a large boulder and tried to catch his breath. He could hear the creature coming up behind them and stood up, his mind flying to his second favorite spell.

"STUPEFY!" Harry screamed, putting as much force as he could behind the words. The creature stumbled backwards and shook its head, letting out a high-pitched screech that was very easy to interpret, despite Harry's limited understanding of bird vocalization.

It was _Very Pissed Off._

But, just as Harry had begun to resign himself to becoming a bird meal, Luna surprised him by standing up and pulling something from one of her pockets. She tapped it with her wand and it grew large enough that she had to heft it over one shoulder.

"Is that...a bazooka?" Harry asked, his eyes wide with shock.

"Is that the Muggle term for it?" Luna replied excitedly. " _Ba-zoo-ka_. Hmm, I like it! I made a couple of...adjustments, so hopefully this works!"

She pulled something out of another pocket and enlarged it as well. Harry caught a whiff and wrinkled his nose.

"Is that...firewhisky?" he asked.

The bird let out a horrible, jungle-rattling screech. Harry turned his head to watch it began to advance on them again, it's mouth open wide. Harry was fairly certain that he could see rows of serrated teeth spanning all the way down the creature's throat.

When he turned back to Luna, he realized that the vial had been loaded into the bazooka, and he ducked just as Luna shouted, "FIRE!"

The vial shot towards the bird and exploded on its face, causing it to scream and flail backwards. It snapped its beak a few times and then tucked its head under one small wing and moved no more.

"What did you just do?" Harry asked, his eyes wide.

"Oh, they have a low tolerance for alcohol," Luna replied, as though this were common knowledge. She tucked the large gun behind her back into her small rucksack in one smooth movement, where it disappeared as if by magic. "He'll be all right when he wakes up, but he'll probably have a splitting headache."

"...He?" Harry asked uncertainly.

"It's the plumage, you see. The brightly colored ones are male."

"Ah. So. T...that wouldn't happen to be an Undetectable Extension Charm, would it?" Harry asked as he realized that his legs were still shaking with adrenaline. Changing the subject helped, if only a bit.

"Yep!" Luna said happily. "Hermione made it for me when she found out that I was quote 'going off doing crazy things in a crazy place!' She's a good friend. But I suppose you knew that already, didn't you, Harry?"

Harry frowned. He hadn't spoken much with Hermione and Ron recently. Now that they no longer had classes or a shared common room as an excuse to get together, Harry didn't want to be a bother. And now, he knew that with Ginny off doing bigger and better things with a bigger, better….no….it wouldn't do to think about that, not in the middle of a killer jungle filled with killer creatures. In any case, Ron may have been Harry's best friend, but Ginny was his sister and Harry knew that when it came down to it, blood was always going to win out over friendship. He'd been alone before, though. He knew how to survive.

But he didn't have to like it one bit.

"They've been busy lately," Harry said, finally, as Luna rifled through her rucksack. "I...didn't want to be in the way."

"That's the Wrackspurts talking, and you know it," Luna replied, pulling out a camera. "Ah, there it is. Now I just need to check the film, and…"

" _Wait_. Are you going to take pictures of _that_?!" Harry exclaimed as she began to approach the unconscious bird. "It tried to _eat_ us!"

"I know. Hence the...what did you call it? Ballzooker?" Luna replied with a shrug.

"It's a _bazooka," Harry_ said, flinching slightly when Luna fixed him with a cool look _, "_ and _._..well...nevermind what it's called! I'll just stay nearby and make sure it doesn't wake up," he finished lamely, following her.

Luna made some notes in her notebook and took pictures of the comatose bird, and she plucked a couple of its almost pearlescent tailfeathers before finally standing and stretching.

"Ahh, that feels good," she said, pressing the feathers into her notebook. "He won't miss those, anyway. Let's go find a good spot for lunch."

Luna led the way and finally, they broke free of the jungle into a lovely grassy field, which was perfect for a picnic lunch until a large cloud seemed to appear out of nowhere and drenched them to the bone before they could throw up the tent that Luna had in her rucksack. It wasn't as large as the Weasley tent he'd used before while on the run, though it did have one large room, a kitchen, bathroom and what looked like a small bedroom off to one side.

Harry ducked into the bathroom and changed quickly into the clothes he'd packed in his own rucksack. Even a Drying Charm didn't seem to fully dry the clothing he'd been wearing, so he hung them over the towel rack, hoping that the warm air would dry them quickly.

When he exited the bathroom, he caught Luna sitting in a pair of white boyshorts and a gray sports bra.

"Sorry!" Harry yelped, covering his eyes.

Luna simply smiled and shrugged. "I don't mind. They're comfortable. Besides, it's a bit warm in here with the fire going."

Harry looked over to see Luna's clothing hanging by the fireplace, which made the already warm air just a bit muggy.

"Yeah, I can see what you mean." Harry tried to look away, but Luna simply patted the spot next to her on the couch.

"Come on, Harry," she said. "You deserve a break."

"Uh...ok," Harry sat down a bit stiffly next to her and stared at the floor.

"You can lie down and put your head on my lap, if you'd like," Luna said airily, "I hear that is very relaxing."

Harry chanced a panicked look at Luna's state of near-undress and gulped. "Um...I'm fine here…"

"Well, the offer is always open," Luna replied with a soft smile. "In any case, I'm afraid that I've been a bit lax in giving you much information about what we'll be up to here. Would you like to know more?"

"It's not really a big deal to me," Harry replied, sitting back and looking up at the ceiling of the tent instead of the floor in what he hoped looked like a nonchalant manner. "I have almost a month before I have to be anywhere, so why not here? I mean, getting eaten by something large and hungry notwithstanding."

Luna smiled. "That's what I've always liked about you, Harry. You're so willing to just go with things as long as you feel they're important."

Harry felt his cheeks grow warm at the unexpected praise. "I...well...thanks, I guess."

"I just want you to know that there are other dangers than just the wildlife," Luna said seriously. "From what I've read, there's a thriving ecosystem of creatures you can't find anywhere else in the world, which I am hoping to document as time goes on, but the main thing I've come for...well...it's for my mum."

"Your... _mum_?" Harry asked, thinking back to what Ginny had told her about how Luna's mother had died in the middle of creating an experimental spell.

"Yes," Luna replied. "There's a type of crystal found here with magical properties that are more myth than fact. The text Hermione helped me find refers to it as Deepocean Opal. It's rare, but it is said that if you can find a large enough piece and polish it into the shape of a mirror, you can speak with the dead."

Harry, who personally felt that he'd had quite enough experience speaking with the dead, was not convinced that this was a good idea. "Luna... I know what it's like to lose a parent at such a young age...I mean, come on, I'm Harry Potter- everyone knows how I got this thing." He pointed to his scar and tried to look like he was being casual about it, but he could tell that Luna hadn't been convinced.

"It's not for me, Harry," she said, her lip quivering ever so slightly. "It's for my father. Recently, he's gotten...morose...and nothing I do seems to cheer him up. I found him crying over a moving photograph of mum the other night."

"That's...not good," Harry replied, not knowing what to say.

"It's especially _not good_ that his head is nearly covered with Wrackspurts, even after applying daily treatments all over the house," Luna replied, tightening her hands into fists, "Harry, when I caught him with the portrait, he was talking about _killing himself_ to be with her. When I promised him that I'd do this, he brightened up almost instantly...so I have to find it, I just have to!"

"Luna…" Harry placed a hand on her shoulder.

She looked at him, her icy eyes adamant. "I can't lose him too."

Her voice was almost a whisper, and Harry took her hand, squeezing it gently.

"You can count on me," he said. "Besides, if you remember, I did sign up for this."

Luna gave him a small smile, but it was tight and didn't quite reach her eyes. "Thank you, Harry."

They decided to camp that first night in the clearing but were up early the next morning. Though Luna made Harry blush by suggesting that they share the bed, (though it was obvious that she wasn't thinking of the same sort of sharing that he was), he eventually settled on enlarging the couch and sleeping there instead. Understandably, he'd awoken early, as the couch was not really appropriate for a good night's sleep.

Harry, who felt decidedly useless as far as magical creatures were concerned, decided to make breakfast. Learning to cook had been a pet project of his after the war. Molly Weasley had been so broken up and everyone had been dealing with their losses in different ways, that Harry had spent a bunch of time with the woman who'd practically become his adoptive mother simply learning how to cook. There was something soothing about chopping vegetables and the cheerily bubbling pots on the stove. It was, Harry thought, quite a lot like magic in its own right. Cooking soothed his mind- straightened out the frayed, tangled wires of anxiety that still gripped him from time to time when a smell or a sound brought him back to that horrible final battle.

"Wow, that smells amazing!" Luna said, stretching as she exited the bedroom. Luckily, she appeared to be wearing an adequate amount of clothing, but Harry still nearly dropped the eggs. He told himself he was being stupid- Luna was just being her usual self. She didn't mean anything by having walked around in so little the evening before. She hadn't meant anything by offering to let him rest his head on her lap. She most certainly thought of the bed thing as an innocent situation in which they would both be sleeping and not much more. No, Harry decided, he needed to pull his head out of the gutter, especially since he'd only recently found himself unattached. Besides, they were in the middle of a dangerous expedition, and it simply wouldn't do if Harry ended up getting them both in serious trouble by mooning about like a teenager.

* * *

Over the next two weeks, they fell into an easy rhythm. Harry would get up early and make breakfast. They'd eat together, then pack up and start moving. Luna would consult the map she'd copied over from one of the books Hermione had snagged from the Ministry archives. They'd normally encounter a couple of magical creatures, but luckily they mostly managed to avoid anything big and hungry. Harry got into the habit of sketching some of the creatures, though he wasn't very good. He also helped Luna collect samples for potions ingredients. Once the sun began to set, they'd make camp and Harry would make dinner while Luna told him various in-depth stories about the various flora and fauna in Atlantis, and they'd talk more about the plans they had for the next day. They'd end up on the couch by the fire, often getting sleepy and falling asleep against one another. Though Harry had never been much of a bookish person, found himself drawn into Luna's enthusiasm, and he'd find himself nodding off as Luna read to him in her calming, soft voice. One night, he awoke to find that he was lying on his back, his head resting against something very soft and comfortable. As he opened his eyes, he saw the cover of a book above him and he realized that, somehow, his head was on Luna's lap.

"Er, it's not what-" he started.

"You looked uncomfortable, so I moved you," Luna said. "Your head is nice and warm. I quite like it, really."

Harry blinked as he considered her words. After all, he had to admit that he _was_ rather comfortable. "Are you...sure?"

Luna put the book to the side and stared down at him. "It's fine, Harry. Please...let's just stay like this."

Harry closed his eyes and let his mind wander into a light sleep. But just as he succumbed to sleep, he thought that he could feel her running her soft fingers through his hair.

* * *

They'd come to a castle. There was no other word that could better describe the structure that loomed above them, yet it was unlike any castle Harry had ever seen. The spires were craggy and asymmetrical and it looked as though a central tower consisting of many pillars made the main midsection of the building, but they were half-collapsed and looked long abandoned.

"Is this where we're supposed to find the Deepocean Opal?" Harry asked.

"According to the books," Luna said, gingerly stepping around a crumbled pillar that was half-buried in the dirt, "but it may take awhile to find a way in."

Harry wandered about, looking for some manner of entry, when he heard Luna... _singing_?

Harry ran back to where Luna had been, but he had to shield his eyes as a bright blue light burst out from the area where Luna had been standing.

"Luna!" Harry shouted, fear bubbling in his chest.

"I'm all right, Harry," Luna replied, clasping her hands behind her and stretching. "I haven't cast that spell in awhile, so I had to get the hang of it before it would work."

"The...hang of….what is _that_?!" Harry's eyes had darted over to the giant hole in the wall that had most certainly not been there before. It didn't look like the product of an explosion. It appeared to be a perfect circle, only it was impossibly smooth and extended deep inside of the castle. It looked like a huge mouth waiting to swallow them in darkness and Harry gulped loudly at the thought of stepping foot inside.

"It's a door. We have to go in- that's the point," Luna explained calmly.

"But...what if it closes?" Harry finished lamely, feeling like an idiot for letting the words escape his mouth.

"It won't." Luna's eyes shone with conviction and Harry knew better than to argue.

"Fine, but I'm coming with you," Harry replied.

"I wouldn't expect any less of you, Harry," Luna replied, smiling brightly.

For some reason, though she'd said his name many times before, there was something in the way she said it that made Harry's stomach swoop with excitement.

Harry lit his wand as Luna raised her hand and conjured a circle of greenish-blue flame around her wrist. She held her palm out towards the darkness before them and the flame floated free of her body and twirled in front of them as they made their way down the passageway.

"So...what happens when we find it?" Harry asked, shoving his hands in his pockets.

Luna stopped and looked at him with a small smile on her face. To Harry's surprise, she reached out and took his hand in hers. She rubbed her thumb over his and stared at him, biting her lower lip slightly.

Harry swallowed thickly, his heart thudding in his chest as she brought her face close enough to his that their noses were nearly touching.

"Are you sure you want me to spoil the surprise? It will work better if you don't know ahead of time." Luna reached up with her free hand and pulled a strand of Harry's hair away from his eye.

"W...will I like the surprise?" he asked, his voice wavering. He could smell the sweet scent of her breath, and he felt his eyes go half-lidded as hers did the same. The thought of closing the distance between their lips was maddeningly tempting, but for some reason, he just couldn't bring himself to move.

"I wouldn't have asked you to come if I didn't think that you wouldn't," Luna replied, pulling away from him suddenly and pressing her finger against the tip of his nose. "Anyway, all this fresh air has most definitely helped rid you of your Wrackspurt infestation!"

Harry stumbled forward as Luna turned and skipped ahead, his mind still in a bit of a haze. Finally, he shook his head and quickened his pace to catch up with her. A sense of quiet anxiety was slowly twisting in his stomach. He could no longer deny it- Luna was...Luna….was…. _intoxicating_.

* * *

"We're nearly there," Luna said, her voice brimming with subdued excitement.

All in all, the journey had largely been dark and uneventful. Harry was almost disappointed that his only heroic gesture had been to hold his wand tip over the map that Luna unrolled from time to time to check their progress.

Moments later, Harry's eyes widened as the tunnel widened into a large cavernous opening. Luna sent three of her fiery rings out into it, and they both had to squint when the light reflected back at them. As Luna canceled the spell, Harry poked the tip of his wand out and gasped as he saw thousands and thousands of crystals of all different shapes and sizes lining the walls. They grew from the ceiling and the floor in thick, translucent columns, and as Harry strained his ears, he could hear the sound of dripping water from further inside. Luna took his hand, leading him down the narrow path against the right side of the wall, and Harry followed, gulping loudly as pebbles dislodged from the path and tumbled down the side. Only after a few long moments did he hear the tiny splash as they hit the water below.

"We're here." Luna stopped, and Harry could see that she was standing at a podium of sorts, only this one was carved from what looked like a broken crystal that had once stretched to the ceiling from the floor. Strange markings were carved up and around it. Luna placed her hand over the top, her eyes closed in concentration.

Then, she began to _sing_.

At first, Harry thought he was imagining things. But then, the bluish light that had grown around the podium began to spread, lighting up the massive cavern around them. Harry could finally see down to the dark water below them, and he gulped audibly as it began to swirl and move as though a great many bodies were thrashing below the surface. Meanwhile, Luna's voice rang through the cavern. With each note, she built a lilting, haunting melody that seemed to ring deep inside of Harry's chest. Finally, something dark and round burst free from the water and began to ascend in the air towards the podium. Luna continued to sing, her hair flowing around her as though it had a life of its own.

The Deepocean Opal was round, thin and flat, its surface a deep gray that looked almost black in the blue light of the crystals. Harry assumed that it would land in Luna's hand- after all, she was the one calling it to her with her song, but instead it floated over her head and bobbed in the air in front of his face. Slowly, Harry reached up to take it into his hands, marveling at how warm it was to the touch. With a bright flash, the light receded and Harry had only a moment to stuff the Deepocean Opal into a pocket before he nearly had to leap over to the podium, where Luna had begun to fall backwards. It seemed to Harry as though she was falling in slow-motion until he reached her. He marveled at how light she was to catch in his arms, but every thought in his head quickly fled when Luna's eyelids fluttered open and she sat up just enough to kiss him on the lips.

"Thank you, Harry," she whispered, her eyes half-lidded, before going limp in his arms.

"Luna?" Harry shook her as the last bits of light fled from the crystals around them. "Luna? Luna! Come on, Luna, you have to wake up- you..have to…"

The darkness pressed around him as he held his ear to her chest, letting out a breath he hadn't known he was holding when he felt her heart beating steadily against it.

Harry shrunk his rucksack and stuffed it in his pocket and then hoisted Luna on his back. Her head lolled against his shoulder as he walked, the sweet scent of her breath escaping her mouth as she slept on.

Luna didn't stir until Harry had finally escaped the darkness of the castle and had placed her gently on the soft, green grass of the meadow beyond.

"Hello," Luna said sleepily, rubbing her eyes.

"You had me worried there for a minute," Harry replied, handing her a cup full of water.

Luna took it and drank greedily, a small stream of water dribbling down one side of her mouth.

"Ahhh," she said, handing the cup back to him. Then, she stood slowly and stretched. She stumbled a little, prompting Harry to lunge forward to catch her, but she grabbed his hand and steadied herself. "It's ok," she said softly, "I'm ok. Did...did it work?"

Harry pulled the Deepocean Opal from his pocket with a grin.

Luna beamed at him, but her eyes were still somewhat sad.

"What's wrong?" Harry asked.

"Is it wrong of me not to want to touch it?" Luna replied. "I know it's for my father, but I still don't know if I'm making the right decision."

"What happened back there?" Harry asked, "I heard you singing...and…"

"The Deepocean Opal is attracted to one's lifeforce," Luna replied sagely, "so I had to draw out my vitality using one of my mother's spells. It looks like I only had to take one year off of my life to call it, though."

"Luna! That's horribly dangerous!" Harry exclaimed, his eyes flashing with alarm.

"You don't say," Luna replied with a smirk. "Well, it's done, so no sense in crying over spilled kneazle milk."

"I'm pretty sure that's not the saying," Harry said, but he couldn't stop himself from grinning.

"Oh? Well, that's what my father always said," Luna replied, smiling back.

"So...then…" Harry suddenly felt awkward as he thought back to the kiss she'd planted on his lips earlier, "I guess that was all...part of the ritual?"

"Oh, yes," Luna replied thoughtfully. "Well, except for the kissing part. I just did that because I thought it would feel good. I mean, I've always wanted to, and it just seemed right."

Harry could feel his face growing scarlet. "Well...that…"

"Did you not like it?" Luna suddenly looked concerned. "I'm sorry, Harry."

"No..it's not that..." Harry looked away.

"What is it?" Her expression was so plaintive that Harry wanted to kiss her again then and there.

And so, he did the only thing he could think to do. He dropped the Deepocean Opal onto the soft grass behind him and closed the distance between them.

And he kissed her.

* * *

Things were always so much more interesting around Grimmauld Place once Luna moved in. And, after Xenophilius Lovegood had one experience with the Deepocean Opal, apparently Luna's mother's spirit had given him such a hard time that he'd never needed to use it again. The artifact was relinquished to the Unspeakables at the Ministry, who were able to unlock a number of secrets about the afterlife with it. Luna bought her father a kneazle for his birthday, which he almost instantly fell deeply in love with and spoiled it rotten as though it were a second child. Ginny moved on, finding love with the Keeper of the Hollyhead Harpies and adopting a gaggle of adorable children and whose love for her children was only eclipsed by the love their grandmother had for them.

And as for Luna and Harry, they built a life together, raising their twin daughters Pandora and Lilli, and their subsequent son, Marius, in the big, old house in London with fantastic trips around the world to see even more fantastic creatures.

"To yet another year of unbelievable adventures," Harry said, clinking his glass gently against Luna's on their tenth anniversary.

"I believe it," Luna replied, smiling back mysteriously as she leaned in to kiss her husband. "I always have."


End file.
